


In Which Crowley and Clem Have a Talk

by OlwenDylluan



Series: It Cannot Be Taken From You [8]
Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Fluff, Heart-to-Heart, Humor, Kid Fic, Other, Snakes, a touch of angst, does it count as kid fic if the kids are snakes and so is one of the parents, no beta we post like desperate men, no matter how you try to keep your kids safe they find ways around it, parenting is hard, snek!babies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 16:01:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21200318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OlwenDylluan/pseuds/OlwenDylluan
Summary: The day's excitement has stirred Clem's anxiety, and Crowley, understanding where he's coming from, tries to reassure him.This takes place a couple of hours afterIn Which Angelica and Clem Meet a Local.





	In Which Crowley and Clem Have a Talk

“So. Met someone today, did you?”

Clem ducked his head as Crowley sat down on the step next to him in the evening light.

_ Did Angelica tell? _

“No, spawn. Angel dad spotted you through the window earlier in the afternoon. I put two and two together when he asked if you’d been there when Angelica started talking to her visitor.”

_ Sorry. _

“Clem, you’re in control of your choices. Angel dad and I lay out ground rules that we think are fair, designed to keep you safe. If you choose to challenge those rules, you have to accept the consequences.”

Clem fidgeted, looking away from his father’s eyes.

“I’m not angry. I would like to know if you had a reason for being on the wall, though, other than just deciding to disobey for the hell of it. That’s what important to me.”

_ I really like how the stones feel on my belly. The sun warms them up, and then I lie on them, and they're bumpy, and the sun warms my back. And it’s quiet. _

“We brought you to the country to be away from the noise and eyes of London, spawn, so you and your brothers and sisters could relax and grow up without worrying, figuring things out in your own time. And you chose to nap on the wall right next to the road?”

_ It’s away from Anthony and Angelica and Tura. _

“Ah. I see.”

_ But Angelica came anyway. _

“You’re lucky she did. No telling what that James person might have done. Poked you with a stick, or some such thing.”

_ He was okay. I just… I don’t like other people very much. _

His son’s voice was apologetic. Crowley put out a hand and ran it along Clem’s neck.

“Spawn, there’s nothing that says you have to like other people, or like being people-shaped. You’re more comfortable like this, and that’s fine.”

Clem pushed his face into Crowley’s hand, hiding his eyes.

“Just tickety-boo, as your angel dad would say.”

He felt more than heard Clem give a small laugh in his mind before sobering again. His son slithered into his lap.

_ Everyone else wants to run around and shout, _ he mumbled. _ It’s loud, and I don’t like it. _

“Don’t let anyone tell you that you have to be something you’re not. There is nothing wrong with your choices along that line, spawn. To thine own self be true. Bill was an idiot in a lot of ways, and I may regret _ Hamlet _ for the rest of my existence, but the most important thing you can do is refuse to let the people around you tell you who to be and what to think. Their truth is not always yours.”

_ Okay. _ Clem didn’t move his head from the safety of Crowley’s sheltering hand. _ Father? _

“Mmm.”

_ Why don’t you like being a snake? _

Crowley sighed.

“I don’t dislike it. There are times when it’s quite comfortable. I just… well, there are times when I get scared. I worry that I’ll get stuck that way, that I’ll lose discipline over who I am and how I control it. It’s… a long story.”

Clem lifted his head in astonishment.

_ I feel like that about being people-shaped, too. _

“Yeah? So we have something in common.”

_ But you do like snake shape? _

“Sure. Especially when I’m lazy and warm. But I’m always a little worried I’ll be that way forever. I started out essentially human-shaped, spawn. The serpent thing came… later.”

Clem laid his chin on Crowley’s hand. After a minute, he said,

_ I don’t want to go to school. _

“What brought this on?”

_ Angelica and the James person. She’s talking about learning to ride a bike now, and Rosa talks about going to school to read books and know all the things, and I… I don’t want to do it. _

“Well, no one’s going to hunt you down for truancy. Not like the authorities know you’re of school age. Or that you exist, really. This is something to discuss with Azirafather, but if you don’t want to be human-shaped and go to school... then I don’t see why we should make you.”

_ Really? _ Clem lifted his head again and flickered his tongue. He sounded hopeful.

“Really.”

They sat in silence for a while, listening to the night breeze in the garden and the crickets in the field beyond.

_ Maybe, _ Clem said thoughtfully, _ once Angelica learns to ride a bike... I can ride in the basket. _

**Author's Note:**

> Facilitating your kids' experiences as they grow can stir up uncomfortable memories. Those memories can also trigger some pretty fierce protective instincts.
> 
> Bonus bedtime exchange:
> 
> _There's only one reason I like being people-shaped._  
"What's that, spawn?"  
_Ice cream._
> 
> 29 Oct 2019: [My son drew Clem in a bike basket!!](https://olwendylluan.tumblr.com/post/188679797190/clem-in-the-bike-basket-wiggleverse-peeps-my-son)


End file.
